1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a returnable and reusable packaging and storage system. More specifically, a returnable and reusable carrier for awnings.
2. Description of Related Art
Elongated members are conventionally placed in elongated rigid cardboard tubes to protect them during shipment and storage. Use of cardboard tubes is satisfactory, in most instances, but outdoor storage can degrade the cardboard tubes and poses a risk of product damage. Degraded tubes must be disposed ot, which creates a disposal problem for the retailer. Additionally, replacement of degraded tubes represents a significant expense to the elongated member manufacturer.
Alternatively, elongated members can be placed within a matrix of support plates within a cart. Examples of this technique may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,516,244 and 5,351,827, each incorporated by reference herein. The plates form channels allowing the elongated members to be stacked without using a cardboard tube.
Since the retailer typically purchases a variety of elongated members having different lengths, the cardboard tubes and the plates present a retrieval problem for the retailer. Namely, when a specific elongated member is desired for purchase or inspection, the tube containing the desired elongated member must be located within the stack of tubes and thereafter manually pulled or otherwise removed from the stack to gain access to the desired elongated member therein. Moreover, the variety of lengths available causes tubes of unequal length to be stacked upon each other, or allows elongated members in uniform length tubes or plates to settle in a region within the tube or plate that cannot be accessed by the retailer. The diameter of the tube may also be too small to retrieve an elongated member by hand. This is not only difficult, but disrupts the order of the remaining shipping tubes and renders inventory control and elongated member retrieval problematic.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a returnable and reusable elongated member transport and storage system. There also exists a need in the art for an elongated member storage system which permits easy insertion of elongated members therein and removal of elongated members therefrom.